


Caged Like Beasts | Fight Like Dogs

by Crustuu



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Death, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Pining, Slow Burn, Trauma, ill probably add tags once this goes on further, itll have an explaination in the story tho, its a miracle komaru survives this tbh, no beta we die like men :), tamed syo, toko barely brings up byakuya because im a traumatized kinnie
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-06
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:20:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28492287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crustuu/pseuds/Crustuu
Summary: AU in which instead of running a hunt for the family of the killing game survivors, the Warriors of Hope pin them against captured adults and each other in a never ending cycle of death and despair; The Killing Ring.A month into being a captive for yet another twisted game, Toko meets Komaru. Her new neighbor in this sick place and sister of Makoto Naegi. The two manage to form an unlikely bond, one which Monaca hopes to destroy them with.~-♥-~Mature rating for depictions of violence, gore, and death. Potential suggestive language.Characters listed may take a while to show up.
Relationships: Fukawa Touko/Naegi Komaru, Genocider Syo | Genocide Jack/Naegi Komaru
Comments: 1
Kudos: 24





	1. Killing Ring

**Author's Note:**

> This will be my first longer work I've done, oh boy. I'm much more used to pacing stuff for oneshots, so I'm praying this reads good.
> 
> Anyways, I thought this concept was neat. I like the idea of Toko//Syo becoming protective of Komaru in this environment and desperately trying to find a way out so she can be safe.

Toko paced around her cage, fiddling her hands with anxiety. She was to be released into the fighting ring once again in an hour. An hour until Syo had to come out. An hour until someone else died at her hands, even if she wasn’t the one in control. Deep down, she knew Syo hated this too. It sucked being forced to fight to the death almost every day for the past month to amuse some unstable child trying to take Junko’s previous title.

Toko made her way slowly to the bed, curling up and pulling the sheets over her face. She could just hide from this all, couldn’t she? She couldn’t stand being stuck in another killing game. It was breaking her slowly. Toko began to shake, tears slowly pouring from her eyes. She had never wanted to be anywhere else more than now. It wasn’t long before her sobs were interrupted by a loud clang. There was commotion by the empty cage paired with hers, drawing Toko’s gaze.

Monokumas swarmed its entrance, one at the center holding a smaller cage. A new victim, Toko thought, staring blankly as the Monokuma walked in and slid the captive onto the floor. It was a girl, not much younger than her. Not even an adult yet. Toko felt a pang of sympathy ring through her. The Monokumas left, leaving the girl on the cement floor.

Toko furrowed her brows. Normally, she wouldn’t care, but there was something different about this. Once she was sure the area was clear of the Monokumas, Toko unwrapped herself and made her way to the divide between their cages slowly. _I could reach her from here…_

Toko reached through the bar, just barely grasping her shoulder and shaking her lightly. The girl stirred, almost instantly giving Toko a wild stare. “Are you okay? You’re th-the youngest person I’ve seen come h-”

“Where am I? I was just with Makoto, we were almost out of the city!” The girl grunted. _Wait, did she say_ -

The girl interrupted Toko’s thoughts with a second grunt as she pulled at the collar around her neck. “And what the heck are these?!” _Oh, the collars_. Toko rubbed around hers, she had gotten so used to it’s presence that she completely forgot about them. As the girl continued messing with it, Toko shot her arms out to stop her.

“I w-wouldn’t mess with that t-too much. They’re set to blow if you try to tear th-them off.” The girl stopped instantly, dread flooding her face. _Man, she’s slowly getting annoying to deal with_. What Toko wouldn’t admit, is that she found it slightly endearing deep down.

“But wait, what’s your name?” Toko shifted, changing her position to a more comfortable one. The other girl blinked.

“Oh, I’m Komaru..! Komaru Naegi!” Komaru gave out her hand, a smile forming on her face with the introduction. Does this girl not understand the situation she’s in?

Toko dodged the handshake. “It’s nice to meet you.” She binked, processing the rest of the information. “N-Naegi huh? That explains Makoto.”

Komaru tilted her head. “Makoto? Do you know him?” Toko nodded.

“H-He was in my class. I’m-”

“Toko?” Toko jolted, _how did she_ \- “Makoto told me about you. You’ve been missing for a month now, this is where you’ve been?” Toko just stared back.

“Y-Yeah. Frankly I’m surprised he mentioned me.” Toko looked to the ground. “Surely they’d all rather be r-rid of me.” Toko tensed as Komaru reached a hand out to touch her knee. At the reaction, the younger girl pulled back.

“S-Sorry! I didn’t realize you were actually uncomfortable with contact.” Toko looked up and saw genuine remorse in her eyes. Someone actually cared about her comforts? “But Makoto told me they’d been trying to search for you. They don’t want to get rid of you!” Toko tried to give an appreciative smile, but it probably came off poorly.

Suddenly, the buzz of the intercoms rang out through the halls.

_Legendary Genocider Syo vs. the Great ####### ####! 10 minutes ‘til showtime!_

The stomp of the Monokumas got closer and closer. Komaru gave a look of mixed confusion and fear. “Sh-Showtime? What does that-”

Toko stood up as the Monokumas reached her cage to escort her. She did her best to hide the distress on her face with a stoic mask.

“Welcome to the Killing Ring.”


	2. Bloodlust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Syo is tired of killing, surprisingly. Also, Komaru gets to meet Syo and gives Toko some reassurance.

Syo lowered her scissors, the familiar crimson dripping from them liberally. Syo just scowled at the mutilated corpse in front of her. She couldn’t take pride in this work.

She thought she was killing to survive before, but now that she absolutely had to kill to survive, she felt nothing but disgust towards her kills. She had even given up styling her kills how she used to. Why go through the effort when the kills weren’t even her sygnature. The only thing she had kept was her scissors.

The Monokuma kids cheered all around her as she was announced the winner. Syo didn’t care. She just wanted to get back, get away from this kill as soon as possible. Her head tilted to the roof subconsciously so she didn’t have to see the corpse in front of her. Frankly, this was enough to permanently turn even _her_ away from killing for the rest of her life.

Syo walked to the edge of the ring, not waiting for the Monokumas to pull her out anymore. This was the routine. Next, they would hose her down so she and Toko wouldn’t sit in their cage covered in blood. A new outfit would be thrown at her to use after while they cleaned her usual. As they led her back to the cage, she blinked in confusion at the sight of a girl occupying the next cage. Miss Morose didn’t tell me we got a neighbor.

As Syo settled back down in the cage, she noticed the new girl perk up.

“Toko! What did they make you do?!” Syo blinked. So she even took the initiative to meet the fresh meat but not to give her a heads up about their situation. Syo gave an unamused glare.

“I think you’re mistaken about who you’re talking to, but to answer your question,” Syo easily recovered her scissors as she spoke, twirling a pair around her finger, “I was doing what they make all of us do here. Kill to survive.” The stranger stepped back.

“W-Wait, mistaken? But you told me yourself!” The girl was confused, and Syo groaned.

“She really didn’t explain it to you then huh. Well I better introduce myself.” In one swift motion, Syo sheathed her scissors and shot out her hand through. Her usual exaggerated smile returned to her face.

“Hello there! I’m the person Miss Morose kindly shares her body with; the one and only Genocider Syo!” The girl only stepped back, the confusion on her face worsening. Syo tilted her head.

“What, don’t know how introductions work?” The other girl shook her head.

“It’s just, I’m confused. I thought you- she didn’t react well to touch.” Syo pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Look, we share emotions but that’s about it. She’s uncomfortable with touch, I love it. We also don’t share memories either, so I’m gonna need your pretty little face to tell me your name.” The other girl blushed slightly.

“O-Okay, sorry, I’ve never met anyone like you two. And I’m Komaru Naegi.” Komaru reached out her hand and Syo took it, giving her a firm shake. Syo shot the girl a smirk.

“Naegi? That explains a lot. Both of you are painfully plain.” The older girl cackled, earning a gasp from the other.

“Hey! That’s rude!” Komaru’s reaction only served to make her laugh harder. Soon enough though, she stopped, holding her head gently.

“Hey, are you okay?” She nearly burst out at the concern in the other girl’s voice, but she knew she didn’t have the energy to.

“Yeah, just light headed.” Syo moved to sit. “I get like this before we switch back after they force us.”

“Force you?” Komaru mimicked her sitting. _She’s like a puppy_. Syo thought inwardly.

“Yeah. I mean, I’m the serial killer and Morose can’t really handle blood. Makes a more interesting battle if they shove me out.” Komaru looked like she was about to ask what she meant, but stopped as Syo slumped forward with a groan.

~-♥-~

Toko gave a heavy exhale as she regained control of her body. She chose to stare at the cement and breath for a bit, regaining her senses as the after affects of the stun-gun pulsed through her head.

“Toko?” She blinked, looking up to see Komaru seated in front of her. _Shit._

“You m-met her, didn’t you?” Komaru gave a nod, and if it hadn’t been for the lack of energy, Toko would’ve hidden away in her own covers. “I-I’m sorry, you probably hate me now.” Surprisingly, Komaru shook her head.

“No, I don’t know why you think I would. Syo seems fine.” The younger girl gave a smile. “And I was confused at first, but I’m not going to hate you for having someone else in your body.” Toko managed to give a smile back. Her wording may be weird, but the intention behind it meant everything to her.

“I-I have dissociative identity disorder.” Toko toyed with her hair as she spoke. “If they don’t think poorly of m-me already, most people c-consider me a freak after she makes herself known.” Komaru gave a sympathetic smile.

“You can’t really control that, it would be mean if I judged you for it. Besides, you’ve been nice to me so far.” Komaru gave a shrug. Before Toko could thank her, the intercom went off again.

_Komaru Naegi to report to training in 15. You will be met with escorts soon._

The mechanical stomp of the Monokumas sounded through the hall, Komaru shot a worried look at Toko.

“You’ll be fine. Just go with the Monokumas- and don’t try to fight them. They will bring you to one of the k-kids who will brief you and give you your supplies.” Toko patted the ground, hoping Komaru would understand it was supposed to be a reassuring gesture.

“Training won’t cause you any harm, they don’t have fun if you get killed before they can use you as a t-toy.” Komaru’s expression worsened, and Toko cursed at herself inwardly. There she goes, failing at being sympathetic.

“Wait, kid?” The younger girl blinked, receiving a nod from Toko.

“Yeah, you’ll get it soon.” The Monokuma’s reached the entrance and Komaru got up, warily walking towards the gate to leave with them.

“Good luck, Komaru. I’ll be here when you’re able to c-come back, okay?” Komaru nodded, and Toko made her way to her bed as the other girl was taken to the training center. The poor mattress felt like a cloud under her as the stress and exhaustion of the day caught up to her. As she drifted to sleep, a thought entered her mind.

_I’m not really alone anymore._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand that's the debut for this fic!! :) I don't plan on having a fast schedule for updating this, but I hope I'm able to see it to the end. Of course Toko already has to be fairly fond of Komaru by the end of this chapter, even if she wouldn't let it show too much outwardly or even tell herself she is.


	3. Getting Used to Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toko is still getting used to Komaru's presence, but the other girl is starting to rub off on her.

Toko shifted in bed. It was her day off, and she fully intended on spending it sleeping. It’s not like there was much else to do here.

“Hey Toki?” Toko lifted her head, seeing Komaru seated in front of the divide between their cages.

Oh that’s right, Komaru. She’d been here for nearly a week now.

“I th-thought I told you to stop calling me that. It sounds dumb.” Toko responded, sat up in bed still.

“I think it’s cute.” Komaru gave a smile, making the older girl groan internally. Komaru was just so much of herself, but Toko would be lying if she said the behavior wasn’t growing on her. “I wanna chaaat.”

Toko got up at the other girl’s groan, making her way to sit in front of her. She kept the thin blanket she had wrapped around her. “I’m here, what did you w-want to talk about?” Komaru shrugged, causing Toko to roll her eyes. She never had a plan when she wanted to talk, did she?

“Well uh, what did you do? I mean, before all of this. If you went to school with my brother, that must mean you’re an ultimate, right?” Toko blinked. Most people already knew her ultimate by her name, considering how famous her works were.

“I-I’m the ultimate writing prodigy. I-I’m kinda surprised you d-didn’t know off the bat, with my stuff being pretty p-popular and all.” Komaru gave a blank stare, before realization flashed in her eyes.

“ _Ohhhh_! Now that you mention it, I think I have heard my friends talk about your books.” Toko blinked, _You_ think _you’ve heard? Most everyone I meet is well acquainted with my books_ … Komaru noticed the reaction, and chose to scratch the back of her head in embarrassment.

“S-Sorry! I don’t really read novels myself, I-I prefer to read manga.” Those words only worsened Toko’s reaction, earning a scoff from the writer. “W-What!”

“M-Manga? Of course you w-would read that.” Toko started, getting onto her high horse. “I b-bet you wouldn’t even know t-true literature if it hit you in the face.” Toko kept her high and mighty behavior, but felt anxious when she looked back at Komaru and saw she had an angry expression.

“That’s mean!” Komaru weakly swung forward, earning a small jolt from Toko. But the action was playful enough to help calm the older girl. “Manga can be good! You’re just too elitist about your personal niche to realize.” Komaru closed her eyes and tilted her head upwards, not reacting when she got an amused chuckle from the writer in front of her.

“Oh y-yeah? You’ll change y-your mind if you actually r-read something of mine.” The younger girl smirked, looking back at Toko as the older girl spoke.

“Alright, but I’ll only do it if you read a manga of my recommendation.” Toko only groaned in response, earning a giggle from Komaru.

“C’mon, it won’t hurt you, and if you’re right I’ll admit it and let you rub it in my face.” Komaru gave a lighthearted smile as she finished. Toko fidgeted with her hands slightly.

_Fine, but if I’m right you’ll owe me more for…_

“Pshh, a-as if we’ll even ever have th-the chance.” Toko said, rolling her eyes. Komaru jokingly pouted in response.

“Heyyy don’t say that. Maybe we can get out of here, if we can I want you to promise you’ll do it!” Komaru reached her hand through the bar, offering up her pinkie. Is she seriously…

“A pinkie p-promise? S-Seriously?” Toko had to hold back a laugh at the gesture.

“Yeah! So I can hold you to it somehow,” Komaru gave a cheeky smile, but lowered the playful act to add on, “if you don’t want to that’s fine. I know it’s a touch thing.” Toko rolled her eyes.

The older gave in and laced their pinkies together, giving them an unsteady shake. “H-Hope this makes you happy, Omaru.” Komaru blinked happily at the nickname, before pulling her pinkie away. It was only then that Toko realized how shaky the small bit of contact had made her.

“Are you ok?” Komaru asked gently, earning a quick flash of confusion from Toko. The older girl was still getting used to having someone who cared about her, even if she thought it was foolish with how short of a time they had known each other.

“Y-Yeah.” Toko moved her hand back closer to her body, tugging slightly at the blanket still wrapped around her. “Just n-not used to it.” Komaru nodded, before sighing.

“They’re saying they’re going to put me through my first fight soon.” Komaru said, changing the topic quickly. “I-I’m kinda scared. I mean, I don’t want to kill anyone!”

“You’ll just have t-to get used to it.” Toko groaned in a monotone voice, letting her sympathy show through her soft expression. “I-I know I’m not the best-t one to talk about it-t since She h-has to deal with it and n-not me. But y-you can’t really get out of it.”

“I know.” Komaru frowned, turning to toy with the hem of her skirt. “I just have to not think about it. I wish I could fight back against them, though.” Komaru turned her puppy dog eyes up to Toko, who frowned back sympathetically. “Hell, w-what if I get killed!”

“I won’t let th-that happen.” Toko spoke without thinking, earning a confused face from the younger girl. “I-I mean, I can’t do m-much, but I can get H-Her to give you p-pointers on self def-fense.” Komaru smiled back at the other girl as she finished.

“I’d appreciate it, Toki.” Toko smiled faintly as her reassurance worked. “Seriously, it means a lot. I hope we can both get out of here.”

“Y-Yeah, me too.” Toko spoke in a low, raspy voice; almost hoping the other girl couldn’t hear. “But I thought I told you to stop calling me that!” The author swiped through the bar at the other girl awkwardly. It was clear she didn’t normally behave like that, but the playful joy it brought to Komaru’s face was worth changing her act.

“And I still say I’ll call you what I want!” Komaru exclaimed, swatting back through the bar. Toko squeaked at the action, causing Komaru to pause, but the two quickly continued the back and forth.

Nearby, a security camera zoomed on them.

The person controlling said camera chuckled lightly, their young eyes staring in joy seeing the two caged girls bond.

“It’s all going to plan, and soon I’ll be able to show them true despair.”

_“Just like big sis Junko.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This note is gonna be more my commentary on how I write this so if that doesn't interest you, thanks for reading the chapter!! See you again in a few days when I can post the next one.
> 
> But anyways, I'm still trying to work on pacing and I hope it's coming out fine. These next couple chapters are gonna hop forward days since it interests me more to write an already-close-to-Komaru Toko, but I'm still trying to show her development over time. For example; Komaru is definitely touchy-feely asf and its beginning to rub off on Toko, but she can't really handle much physical contact atm and it stresses her out to push herself the way she tries. Once I feel I've written Toko into a good spot, the chapters wont hop forward so much.  
> If you read my rambling, thank you. <3


End file.
